Radio frequency identification (RFID) tags are small electronic circuits that provide identifying information in a manner akin to barcodes. RFID tags are becoming ubiquitous in many manufacturing, shipping and warehousing applications.
In operation, RFID tags are queried by an electromagnetic RF pulse of a certain frequency. After reception of the RF pulse, the RFID tag responds with an RF pulse containing encoded information. Typically, the encoded information identifies an object or merchandise associated with the RFID tag.
In many applications, it is important to determine the location or direction of motion of an RFID tag. For example, if an RFID tag is attached to a box moving on a conveyor belt, it may be necessary to determine if the box has passed a certain location, or determine where the box is moving. In conventional RFID tag reader systems, RFID tag location is typically determined by querying the tag with multiple directional antennas that each read in a different direction. This method is effective, but relatively expensive to implement as a result of the multiple antennas and electronics required. Other methods for locating RFID tags may employ multiple readers sharing reception data via a wireless network.
It would be an advance in the art of RFID reader technology to provide a single-antenna structure for determining the location and movement direction of RFID tags. A single-antenna RFID tag locator would reduce the cost of tag-locating RFID readers, and could be widely used in object-tracking applications.